


8 ball

by zigsexual (anythingbutloud)



Series: driam extended universe [2]
Category: The Royal Romance (Visual Novel)
Genre: M/M, a drabble really, one sided olivia/liam, teenage crushes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:20:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26382529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anythingbutloud/pseuds/zigsexual
Summary: it’s maxwell’s 17th birthday party and olivia nevrakis did not not plan on spending it watching drake flirt with their prince, but here she is.
Series: driam extended universe [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1917373
Kudos: 2





	8 ball

**Author's Note:**

> this is a tiny snippet of a moment olivia called out in the final driam vignette that @alcyone then peer pressured me to write, so throwbacks to the highschool days yet again! i’m never going to actually finish this so it’s just going to be a ficlet i suppose but wanted to post if for you all anyways. this is feat. one-sided olivia/liam because miss olivia has not figured out her life yet.

It’s been about an hour since she arrived at Maxwell’s party, and already Olivia is questioning why she felt the need to come in the first place. She’s not sure what she expected. A respite from the tedious boredom of traipsing through a palace that would never be hers? Maybe. A chance to mingle with the other elites who sit in the same realm of notoriety as she? Certainly not, if the attendees she’d crossed paths with already were any indication.

No, the reality of the situation was this: she had come expecting Liam, and she had found Liam and Drake.

She watches them now from her position tucked aside in an alcove, lips pursed. A few minutes prior she had been overjoyed at the prospect of finally getting Liam alone, leading him into a side room under the pretenses of playing pool. How was she to know that he would actually expect to play the game? And how was she to know that Drake would find him with the exact same idea as well?

Or — perhaps not the exact same idea. She crosses her arms as Liam comes up behind Drake and rests his hands on his shoulders, explaining the way he should angle his body to line up the best shot. Drake moves so willingly under his touch that there’s no doubt in Olivia’s mind he’d come down here with an ulterior motive.

For what it’s worth, he’s doing an excellent job of pretending he has no idea how to play. He lifts the cue with a shred of apprehension, turning over his shoulder to look back at Liam. “Where do I put my hands again?”

Olivia lets out a loud sigh, but neither pays her any attention. She’s seen Drake line up a shot a thousand times all on his own without a second thought. In fact, the night prior he’d managed five straight games against her without so much as a single loss. And now he has the audacity to pretend he’s a novice? She’d almost be impressed at his tenacity if she weren’t so thoroughly disgusted.

Liam, naïve as he is, brings his own hands down to rest atop Drake’s, gently moving him to the correct position on the cue. He’s talking, trying to explain the reasoning behind the way he adjusts Drake’s fingers, but Olivia can tell by the blush in Drake’s cheeks that the only thing he’s paying attention to is Liam’s chest pressed against his back.

She frowns. What are they — twelve? Isn’t playing dumb the most baseline of flirting techniques? Olivia leans her head back against the wall, staring up at the ornate carved ceilings and wishing for some kind of distraction to put a stop to this nonsense. She could leave, of course, but if she did that it would mean the two of them alone, and she’s not quite ready to resign herself to another loss at Drake’s hands. Although, it would mean he’d first have to take a fucking shot, and judging by this display, he’s at least a few years away from playing that sort of game.

She pushes herself off the wall and strides towards them. “Are either of you going to break, or do I need to do everything around here?”

“Sorry Olivia,” Liam responds, sweet as ever. “I think Drake’s got the hang of it now. Don’t you?”

Drake locks eyes with her across the pool table, and she regards him knowingly. “Sure,” he says, making it very clear how much he wishes she were anywhere else but here, “I’ll give it a shot.”

The shot he does give is damn near perfect. Liam claps a hand down on his shoulder, smiling as though his impromptu lessons had any part of it. “See, you’re a natural!”

Drake smiles back at him, and Liam’s hand lingers, and the tension between them is giving Olivia a headache.

She leans against the table, raising one eyebrow at Drake. “I recall you being fairly practiced when you played against me last night.”

He turns his head away from Liam to shoot her daggers. “Beginner’s luck.”

“Oh, you’re a beginner?”

“Maybe you’re just not cut out to accept defeat.”

She narrows her eyes, although he does have a point. Liam’s hand is still on his shoulder, and she’d be remiss to pretend he would ever touch her so casually. The thought makes her sad, and the sadness makes her angry. Now more focused than ever, she lines up the cue and manages to sink the first ball in a corner pocket.

“Olivia’s always been great at pool,” Liam says, smile now directed at her for once. “She’s better than me at most things.”

She softens. “Only because you’re too noble to be ruthless.”

“You’re not ruthless,” Liam answers, “You’re wise.”

She beams back at him, but his attention has already shifted. While they’d been talking, Drake had somehow landed two in one pocket with a single shot.

As Olivia’s face melts into a scowl, he shrugs. “Liam’s a good teacher.”


End file.
